Protective sleeve



Sept. 22, 1959 R. H. ELLIOTT 2,904,792

PROTECTIVE SLEEVE Filed Sept. 24, 1957 INVENTOR.

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limited d tates 2,904,792 Patented Sept. 22, 1959 Free PROTECTIVE SLEEVE Robert Hugh Elliott, Jackson, Miss. Application September 24, 1957, Serial No. 685,886 4 Claims. (Cl. 216) This invention relates generally to an item of apparel adapted to form a protective covering for the arms and hands of a wearer, and more particularly to a laced sleeve formed of strong protective material adapted to prevent the wearers arms and hands from becoming burned, scratched or otherwise damaged when working on a hot automobile engine, hot heating equipment, etc.

While protective sleeves of various types for various purposes have been used in the past, the construction and protection afforded has not been adequate. A great deal of difficulty has also been encountered in securing them tightly in position since the fastening means employed thereon has usually been such as to require the use of both hands, or the aid of another person in securing them in place.

It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a hand and arm protective sleeve which can be readily put on by the wearer and tightened around one of his hands and arms with the use of his other free hand, and which, when so tightened, fits snugly and conforms generally to the configuration of the back of the hand and arm, so that there are no loose portions to be caught by moving or projecting parts of machinery and the like.

Another object is to provide a protective sleeve, which may be pre-shaped if desired, to cover and protect the arm and the back of the hand without interfering with the wearers normal dexterity.

Another object is to provide a protective sleeve which is simple in construction, easy and economical to manufacture, and durable in use.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view showing one of a pair of pre-shaped sleeves incorporating the principles of the present invention in position on a wearers arm, the arm being illustrated in this figure in dot-and-dash lines;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view through the clamping means for the free end of the cord taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view through the anchoring means for the fixed end of the cord taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 44 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view similar to that shown in Fig. 4, but showing here the adaptability of the sleeve to expand to fit a larger arm portion; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the invention in which the sleeve is formed with a generally continuous taper throughout its length.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, the sleeve, generally indicated by the numeral 1 in Fig. l, is preferably shaped to conform with the contour of the average hand and arm. Thus, the sleeve 1 includes a medial reduced portion 2, wherein the wrist is received, and flares outwardly therefrom toward an inner enlarged portion 4 which extends to about the elbow and is adapted to receive the wearers forearm. However, the sleeve may be made longer, if its use in a particular environment so requires. The sleeve is also flared outwardly toward its outer end where an enlarged portion 6 extends beyond the knuckles to the adjacent finger joint and is shaped to receive the wearers hand. An opening 8 is provided in the portion 6 for the wearers thumb.

The sleeve 1 may be formed of a single sheet or several pieces of protective fabric material such as woven asbestos. The sleeve has opposite side portions 10 and 12 adapted to be drawn together and overlapped as best shown in Figs. 4 and 5. A row of apertures 14 is provided in side portion 10, being positioned in suitably spaced relation along the entire extent of the sheet and adjacent to but inwardly from its side edge 100. Each aperture may be reinforced by a conventional eyelet 15. Another row of apertures 16 is provided in side portion 12, being similarly positioned along but spaced farther in from the edge 12a of the sheet. Eyelets 17 may be employed to reinforce apertures 16. Each aperture 16 is adapted to align with the corresponding aperture 14 when portions 10 and 12 overlap as shown in Fig. 4.

A single cord or lacing 18 is permanently anchored at one end thereof to the portion 10 adjacent the outer extremity of the sleeve 1. As shown in Fig. 3, one end of the cord 13 is secured under upper lip 15a provided on the outermost eyelet 15; the cord extending from there downwardly through that eyelet and through the corresponding eyelet 17 positioned immediately therebelow. The cord 18 then extends along the inner sur face of portion 12 and passes upwardly through the next adjacent pair of corresponding eyelets 17 and 15, then along the outer surface of portion 10 and then downwardly through the following pair of eyelets 15 and 17, and so on throughout the length of the sleeve. It will be noted from Fig. 1 that the thumb-hole 8 is positioned at a. point about one-fourth of the circumference of the sleeve from the lacing 18.

It will be readily seen that when portions 10 and 12 are laced together in this fashion, a wearer may readily slip one hand and arm into the sleeve and conveniently tighten the sleeve on the arm by simply pulling the free end 22 of the cord 18 with his other hand. Where any part of the cross-sectional area of the arm is too large, and the respective corresponding eyelets 15 and 17 cannot be pulled into alignment (as they are, for example, in Fig. 4), the overlapping portions will still be securely laced together with the cord 18 assuming the position shown in Fig. 5.

A pair of upper and lower anchoring disk members 24 and 26 (Fig. 2), are fastened together in superposed relation and secured to the portion 12 of the sleeve 1 by a rivet 28. As shown in Fig. 2, the disk 24 is dished so that its outer edge is flared outwardly away from disk 26 to provide a tapered space between the two disks. Thus, when the wearer has pulled the cord 18 and tightened the sleeve 1 about his arm, as previously described, the sleeve may be retained on the arm in tightened condition by simply winding the free end 22 of the cord 18 around the rivet 28 in the space provided between the The disks 24 and 26 may be made of compressed tough fiber, spring metal, or any other suitable material.

The embodiment shown in Fig. 6 is similar to that shown in Figs. 1 through 5, corresponding numerals distinguished by prime marks being used to identify the In this instance, however, the sleeve 1 is not entirely pre-shaped to fit the configuration of the average wearers arm. Instead of this, the sleeve 1 is formed of a sheet whose side edges preferably have a consistent taper toward the outer end. Accordingly, when corresponding apertures 14 and 16 are in alignment, the circumference of the inner end, which is adapted to receive the hand is smaller than that of the outer end, adapted to receive the forearm. When sleeve 1 is positioned on the arm, the cord 18 being secured, laced, and tightened in the same manner as described with regard to the embodiment of Figs. 1 through 5, the side portion of the sleeve 1 will overlap to a greater or lesser extent in accordance with the relationship between the sleeves circumference at each point along its length and the circumference of the respective portion of the arm. Sleeve 1 will, therefore, conform generally with the configuration of the arm, and it will be readily seen that this form of the invention is equally suitable for most purposes and can be much more readily manufactured than the first form.

I claim:

1. A protective sleeve, comprising: a sheet of protective material having opposite side portions adapted to be drawn toward each other to define a generally tubular shape having a smaller circumference at one end than at its other end and being tapered therebetween, one of said side portions overlying the other of said side portions, said sleeve having a first row of spaced apertures formed in a substantially straight line along the entire extent of said one side portion adjacent the edge thereof and also having a second row of spaced apertures formed in a substantially straight line along the entire extent of said other side portion but disposed farther inwardly from the edge thereof than said first-mentioned row of apertures in said one side portion, each aperture of said second row being positioned longitudinally of the sleeve to generally overlie a respective aperture of said first row; and fastening means including a single lacing member secured at one end thereof to said one side portion at said one end of said sleeve and being laced successively through the pairs of generally overlying apertures so that said lacing member overlies said one of said side corresponding elements.

portions and underlies said other of said side portions and includes a free end extending at said other end of said sleeve from the last of said pairs of apertures, said free end being adapted to be pulled to tighten the sleeve about an arm when said sleeve is in use; and means for locking said free end of said lacing member in sleeve tightening position.

2. A protective sleeve as defined in claim 1, wherein said locking means includes a pair of disks spaced apart at their outer peripheries and tapering toward each other at their central portions, said disks being secured to each other and to said sleeve at said opposite end of said sleeve and adjacent said last pair of apertures by connecting means passing through the centers of said disks and said sleeve.

3. A protective sleeve as defined in claim 1, wherein the locking means is mounted on said other side portion at a location adjacent to, but spaced inwardly of, the last aperture at one end of said rows of apertures, and wherein the lacing member extends upwardly through said last apertures so that it can overlie said one side portion and extend across the edge of said one side portion and be fastened to said locking means.

4. A protective sleeve as defined in claim 1 wherein the sleeve is flared at said one end and has a thumb hole longitudinally spaced from the extremity of said one end a distance such that the flared portion, when the sleeve is being worn, extends beyond the knuckles of the wearer, said thumb hole also being located at a point positioned about one-fourth of the circumference of said sleeve from said lacing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 635,156 Sterling Oct. 17, 1899 702,471 Pierce June 17, 1902 731,791 Krifka June 23, 1903 741,133 Haynes Oct. 13, 1903 1,603,144 Nichols Oct. 12, 1926 2,088,851 Gantenbein Aug. 3, 1937 2,585,946 Liberman Feb. 19, 1952 

